Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Stop cussin' and drinkin' -- just kidding. Although I have been cussin' a mile a minute tonight and txrad says if I don't stop it, I'm not getting my dinner. And since he's making it, and it's lucky food, I need to bite my tongue.

But damn it all to hell what a way to end a year. I was supposed to get off work at noon today. I didn't even shampoo my hair yesterday because I was planning to do that this morning and then go out, eat lunch and run errands today. No such luck. I finally finished up a bit after 4:30 this afternoon, and then had to load a couple of new ink tanks in the Canon printer which sucks those dry like an Elko whore in August.

I never did get to Walgreens to pick up some digital photos of the new floors I sent over last weekend and forgot to pick up which I had planned to send to my mother on Monday so she'd have them today along with 2 pounds of locally roasted coffee which I also never had time to buy, and even if I had I probably wouldn't have had time to go mail it.

And just before I went to take my shower late this afternoon I eyeballed the cat litter boxes and meant to clean those before I showered but something distracted me and I noticed them again after I showered. I won't clean cat litter after I've showered. I also noticed a lot of framed photos and ticky tacky still sitting on the sofa in the den after we cleared the mantle for the new framed pastel which I wanted to put away and that pissed me off because there's no place to put anything that doesn't already have a lot of clutter present.

My Zen music player which has sat idle for several months is not recharging even though I only got it less than 2 years ago and it's hardly been used at all. So apparently all the time I spent loading thousands of songs was time wasted.

Last weekend I wanted to do a run-through with Turbo Tax to see if it's worth paying my property taxes in 2008 vs. 2009 for a bigger tax refund is now apparently a moot point since 2009 is less than 6 hours away.

All this aggravation sent me out on the patio for a smoke only to have that disrupted by the fucking asshole methamphetamine junkies behind us blasting heavy metal and shooting off fireworks during a drought.

One car is about to be 5 months past due on the required safety inspection while the other car is about 5,000 miles past the recommended maintenance.

I meant to visit a dentist in December under my insurance plan which expires today before my new insurance kicks in tomorrow just in case there's major work to be done. That didn't happen, nor did my planned visit to get my hair cut between Labor Day and Halloween. I haven't even had time to go to the bank to deposit checks which have been piling up since mid-December.

One of my vendors from work sent me a box of gift wrapping supplies in early December which I intended to give to someone who celebrates the holidays and actually gives gifts and that's still here, now safely in storage for another 11 months or so. I also have a huge box of candy cluttering up my kitchen which I need to give away so someone else can rot their teeth on it -- ideally someone who has time to visit a dentist.

Will I stop cussin'? Hell no.Will I stop drinkin'? Are you fuckin' kiddin' me?Will I stop smokin'? Depends on what's being smoked. If it's illegal, hell fuckin' no.

But I clearly do need to reduce clutter in my life, improve my organizational techniques, and strive for minimalism. Less ticky-tacky. One thing I fucking hate is shit my mother gives me that was hers because SHE wanted to de-clutter and now I have it and feel guilty for getting rid of it because it was hers.

New motto: if it can serve a function, give it one or get rid of it. So various bowls and vases will be put to use or given to someone who will use it via Goodwill.

And can we please pass a law that whenever a major holiday like Christmas and New Year fall on a Tuesday or a Thursday, we get a four-day weekend? This bullshit of having to work on Friday is fucked.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Witchay Woman loves New Mexico and Santa Fe as much as we do. Maybe even more, if that's possible. Each year she sends a small holiday card featuring one of her beautiful pastels and I have five or six I've been saving for the day when I can drag myself out to get them framed. Framing just happens to be one of those tasks that is very conducive to procrastination.

A few weeks ago she emailed me a picture of her latest creation and it moved me in that very special way. I got bold and said, "I want that in my house!" After a virtual handshake she swung by the house this afternoon and voila!

I had a bunch of personal photographs on the mantle -- pets and relatives mostly -- and that has all been cleared away for this gem. Not sure I want to keep the cock there but at least it does not distract too much. My father made that in his woodworking shop back in the mid-70s.

This is a perfect spot for the painting because it adds another layer of beauty to a room which had almost no character before we painted and put in the new floor. And even better that there is a recessed light fixture above the fireplace which can be directed to the wall.

Honestly, I'd move the cock and put a couple of pieces of my Indian pottery collection up there to keep the Santa Fe theme going were it not for the cats who have been known to prance along the mantle. I don't think I want to risk having the pottery up there.

UPDATE:

OK, I got daring and added some of the pieces I talked about earlier. I like the fish element which I purchased from a local gallery awhile back where incidentally, Witchay Woman was showing another of her works.

And I like the pottery although I wouldn't sleep a wink tonight if I left those out. I just wanted to see how it would look all tied together. Too busy?

Do I need to ditch my cock? (Hey, no snide comments!)

The fish could stay. It would not be subjected to great harm if it were knocked off the mantle by feline activity.... at least I don't think so. It also plays off the fish motif (which you really can't see in the photograph) in the pottery piece to the right of it. And I like the way the black & white piece works with the picture frame.

Oh, this all makes me nervous. It's getting put away. The last thing I need is to hear the sound of smashing pottery in the morning. I can say that because the cats have been watching me carefully arrange this display. And I'm sure they can't wait to investigate.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

A few months back when txrad and I swapped desk positions I never moved the hi-fi rack over near my desk so I could use it. Not that I really need to for CDs since almost all of them are stored on that little lime green Zen player which also has a built-in FM tuner -- something I am lacking in my big rack system.

For vinyl, I need the big turntable. And that turntable cracks me up. There's no switch to adjust the speed for 33 rpm to 45 rpm. In order to do that you have to remove the glass platter and adjust the belt to a different position on a spindle. Sometimes I think I may be too lazy to be a true audiophile. I never liked 45s anyway. There's also a screw-down clamp to hold the LPs in place. Again, a bit of work just to listen to roughly 22 minutes of music before flipping it over and repeating. However, I just can't bring myself to use the Zen player unless I'm away from the hi-fi system.

I also spent much of the afternoon researching technologies which have happened while I wasn't paying much attention for the past year or so, primarily HDMI which has apparently rendered everything I own obsolete with the exception of the new Dish Network HD receiver we got recently.

Nice. Technology sure moves quickly. I'm still infatuated with my 4GB USB Smart Drive which I can wear around my neck and it weighs about as much as a plastic whistle.

This is all really cool but could we slow it down just a bit so I can actually have time to enjoy it before the next big thing rolls out?

Question of the Day

Have you bought a Blu-ray DVD player and can you tell a big difference in picture quality on your HDTV? With or without an HDMI cable?

In a bizarre Christmas Eve rampage in a Los Angeles suburb, a 45-year-old man in a Santa Claus outfit opened fire at a group of revelers in a house that moments later went up in flames, killing at least five people and injuring several others, the authorities said on Thursday.

[...]

The frenzied shooting, which may have been prompted by a marital dispute, occurred just before midnight Wednesday at a two-story home on a cul de sac in Covina, a suburban town about 22 miles east of Los Angeles.

Oh yeah, that sanctity of marriage thing again. Explain it to me cause I'm still not gettin' it.

Because I tied one on last night and have no creative juices, I'm going to steal from Nicole who sent me this bit of holiday cheer. [And she fixed the greeting for me!]

Question of the Day

What's your favorite thing about Christmas?

txrad and I don't celebrate Christmas per se. But I am celebrating the fact that I have a day off from the hustle and bustle of work. I also enjoy this day because of the quiet and solitude. There's no shopping to do, no business transactions, no mail delivery, no banking, no traffic, no deadlines, and nothing urgent. I can sit around and do nothing and not feel guilty. The world seems to stop turning for a day and what a relief!

Later this afternoon I'll go out to the garden and pick collard greens and tonight we'll prepare a feast for ourselves and celebrate the arrival of a new moon.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

The wet gray sludge buried about 400 acres six feet deep. One house was torn from its foundations, and 11 other homes were damaged and evacuated. No injuries or fatalities have been reported.

TVA estimates that the cleanup could take weeks to complete and says long-term plans are being developed. Environmentalists warn that fly ash contains toxins - mercury, arsenic, and lead among others - that could seep into the ground and flow downriver.

Monday, December 22, 2008

This is a scene from Zimbabwe of children gathering corn that spilled from a truck.

In the dirt lanes of Chitungwiza, the Mugarwes, a family of firewood hawkers, bake a loaf of bread, their only meal, with 11 slices for the six of them. All devour two slices except the youngest, age 2. He gets just one.

And on the tiny farms here in the region of Mashonaland, once a breadbasket for all of southern Africa, destitute villagers pull the shells off wriggling crickets and beetles, then toss what is left in a hot pan. “If you get that, you have a meal,” said Standford Nhira, a spectrally thin farmer whose rib cage is etched on his chest and whose socks have collapsed around his sticklike ankles.

[...]

Still dominated after nearly three decades by their authoritarian president, Robert Mugabe, Zimbabweans are now enduring their seventh straight year of hunger. This largely man-made crisis, occasionally worsened by drought and erratic rains, has been brought on by catastrophic agricultural policies, sweeping economic collapse and a ruling party that has used farmland and food as weapons in its ruthless — and so far successful — quest to hang on to power.

A survey by the UN World Food Program reported a shocking 60% of people had consumed only one meal the previous day, up from 13 percent last year. Those who had eaten nothing the previous day accounts for 12% of the population.

All of this brought about by an asshole's quest for power. Mugabe must go.

We celebrated the winter solstice by venturing north on a cold and breezy day to Madras Pavillion for some delectable south Indian cuisine.

A friend and former co-worker joined us. Kathy is originally from Australia and loves Indian food so when we get together, there's never a discussion about what kind of food we want; it's simply a decision on which Indian restaurant.

We used to go out together for Indian food when we all worked in Los Angeles years ago. She prefers hers mild; we like ours spicy.

This one can be clicked for embiggenness and smell-o-rama.

As usual, I forgot to snap a picture before I had started to dig in. That's my masala dosa in the left foreground missing a corner already. Yum.

I couldn't be satisfied with just one sweet. I had to try a little mango kulfi and carrot halva. Both were sensational and neither were too sweet. Just perfect.

Mmmmmm. Happy, happy, happy.

We had to take a solstice nap after lunch.

Notice the presence of Indians in the first photograph. We often joke that if there aren't any Indians eating in an Indian restaurant then it's probably going to suck.

Lordy, if I could snap my fingers and have it be January 20, I'd do it. Because I'm ready to have a new #2.

Mr. Biden said he believed that the advice and recommendations Mr. Cheney had given President Bush “has been not healthy for our foreign policy, not healthy for our national security, and it has not been consistent with our constitution, in my view.”

“His notion of a unitary executive, meaning that in time of war, essentially all power goes to the executive, I think is dead wrong, I think is mistaken,” he said. It had had the effect, Mr. Biden added, “at a minimum to weaken our standing in world and weaken our security. I stand by that judgment.”

Saturday, December 20, 2008

She was frequently the voice of the ship’s computer, and about two weeks ago she completed the same role for the forthcoming J.J. Abrams movie “Star Trek,” Mr. Rossall said. She was a regular participant at “Star Trek” conventions for fans.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

I'm tired of staring at a post about Adolf Hitler so I'm taking time off work to put up something else, although I can't guarantee this won't be disturbing on a completely different level.

I simply cannot fathom such a bonus being handed out in some of these examples.

For Dow Kim, 2006 was a very good year. While his salary at Merrill Lynch was $350,000, his total compensation was 100 times that — $35 million.

[...]

Mr. Kim’s colleagues, not only at his level, but far down the ranks, also pocketed large paychecks. In all, Merrill handed out $5 billion to $6 billion in bonuses that year. A 20-something analyst with a base salary of $130,000 collected a bonus of $250,000. And a 30-something trader with a $180,000 salary got $5 million.

But Merrill’s record earnings in 2006 — $7.5 billion — turned out to be a mirage. The company has since lost three times that amount, largely because the mortgage investments that supposedly had powered some of those profits plunged in value.

Unlike the earnings, however, the bonuses have not been reversed.

Just thinking about this coupled with the word bailout makes me cringe.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Here I go again putting myself out on a limb with this story about a store refusing to decorate a cake for a child's birthday. Sounds cruel except that the child's name is Adolf Hitler Campbell. Another story.

But let's get real. The assholes are the parents, not the child. It's rare that I disagree with Keith Olbermann, who covered the story tonight, but it does happen. And he dragged Rachel Maddow into the fray. I see their point but I think they are wrong.

When you go into business, you are in business to serve all people. No doubt they have baked cakes and decorated them for any number of racists, homophobes, bigots, whatever, but it was in a less obvious situation. Refusing to decorate a cake for a child who happens to be named Adolf Hitler Campbell, even if the cake decoration itself was to say only "Adolf Hitler" is unacceptable in my opinion.

Adolf in and of itself is not a bad name. Nor is Hitler. And I'm sure there's been more than one Adolf Hitler on the planet given the preponderance of Germans. And it's not like the parents, assholes though they are, were asking for a cake to celebrate the birthday of Adolf Hitler. His birthday was just two days from mine way back in April. This is a cake for a child who does not yet comprehend the atrocity inflicted upon him by his asshole parents.

Let him have his cake. Give him as much joy as possible in his young years because he will be subjected to hell by the time he's going through school.

Honestly, this hysteria reminds me a bit of the Hussein frenzy surrounding Obama. The difference being that Barack was named prior to Saddam Hussein coming to power. It's just a name. And so is Adolf. And so is Hitler. Deal with it.

The kid is not Adolf Hitler. He is just named after him. He deserves a cake, and more. And Wal-Mart came through for him.

Wow, politics really does make for strange bedfellows. I wish George Carlin was around to pontificate on this story.

This is an odd coincidence. I was just reminiscing a few days ago about Socks, the Clinton's White House cat during the 1990s, and was wondering how long Socks had been dead.

Back in the 90s I picked up 3 souvenir postcards of Socks while in Arkansas and then never could bring myself to send them to anyone. I still have them in a drawer (go ahead, call me obsessive) and here's a scan of one.

Click to embiggen

Socks is not dead yet. He still lives with Betty Currie who is currently volunteering in the Barack Obama transition to the White House.

Since leaving the White House, Ms. Currie, 69, has shied from publicity and kept a low profile in Hollywood, Md., where she lives with her husband, Bob, and Socks, the presidential cat, which she took with her after Mr. Clinton left office.

[...]

Ms. Currie has kept in touch with the Clintons and donated $750 to Mrs. Clinton’s campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination this year. When she ran into Mrs. Clinton last spring, she told a writer from Southern Maryland Newspapers, Mrs. Clinton asked about Socks.

U.S. News & World Report has reported that Socks, now 19, has cancer.

There is a discrepancy between the age reported here and what appears on the Wiki entry linked at the beginning of this post which would date Socks at 17 going on 18.

In either case, I'm very surprised and happy to know that Socks is alive and will hopefully make it through January. If so, he will have lived through four administrations. Amazing.

Left to our own devices (i.e. the free market economy) I wonder how long we'd ride the worm before implementing necessary change to break this cycle.

From the plains of North Dakota to the deep waters of Brazil, dozens of major oil and gas projects have been suspended or canceled in recent weeks as companies scramble to adjust to the collapse in energy markets.

[...]

But the project delays are likely to reduce future energy supplies — and analysts believe they may set the stage for another surge in oil prices once the global economy recovers.

Much to my dismay, this is already having an impact on cleaner and greener alternatives.

Investment in alternative energy sources like biofuels that had flourished in recent years could dry up if prices stay low for the next few years, analysts said. Banks have become reluctant lenders, especially to renewable energy projects that may prove unprofitable in an era of low oil and gas prices.

This would be an ideal time for the government to take a leading role in promoting and developing green alternatives to better prepare us for the years ahead when we will, without a doubt, be facing prices similar to, or higher than, what we saw over the summer of 2008.

I am hopeful that Barack Obama will lead the way.

Speaking of biofuels, those morning coffee grounds can do more than feed your roses.

In research that touches on two of Americans’ great obsessions — coffee and cars — scientists at the University of Nevada, Reno, have made diesel fuel from used coffee grounds.

Meanwhile, the Toyota Prius plant in Mississippi, scheduled to begin production of the car in 2010, is being put on hold. Indefinitely.

A casualty of a weak economy, not to mention average gas prices back down around $1.66 nationwide.

At the Life Christian Church in West Orange, N.J., prayer requests have doubled — almost all of them aimed at getting or keeping jobs.

Like evangelical churches around the country, the three churches have enjoyed steady growth over the last decade. But since September, pastors nationwide say they have seen such a burst of new interest that they find themselves contending with powerful conflicting emotions — deep empathy and quiet excitement — as they re-encounter an old piece of religious lore:

Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize if the fire was connected to ''undeserved negative attention'' from her failed campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee.

Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said Saturday.

What do you make in the kitchen from scratch that most people buy already made in a store?

I make pizza dough from scratch, and pie crusts. And thanks to Minstrel Boy, cranberry sauce. God I LOVE that stuff!

txrad takes it to a whole new level. I have been trying to get him to make burger buns and for the past few weeks he's been doing it. He also makes the veggie sausages for our pizza topping and he makes BBQ sauce for our burgers. We used to buy veggie sausage at the store and it was about $3.49 per tube.

I would like to start making the veggie burgers from scratch instead of buying Boca. I love their spicy chik'n veggie patties but lately they've been sold out at HEB. I could remedy that problem very easily.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Do me a favor. Start this music and let it go for about 3 minutes before you read the rest of this post. It will aid in digestion.

The subject of psychedelia came up just now in conversation here at rancho de kona, and it reminded me of something. Psychedelic (as opposed to Funkadelic)was one of the first words I learned to spell. I might have been at the ripe old age of 6 or thereabouts.

It's funny how the last two election cycles have been all about the gains of Democrats and yet Republicans still seem to have control. The auto industry bailout may be dead.

The prospects of a $14 billion government rescue of the American auto industry seemed to vaporize Thursday morning as the Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, spoke out forcefully against the bill, effectively dooming its chances despite the urgings of the White House.

Gee, only $14 billion? That's only $5 billion more than what we'd spend to continue production of those unnecessary F-22s I caught hell for trying to kill off yesterday.

I have differing degrees of disgust with bailouts, even when they might be necessary, or worth the risk. The banking industry? That pissed me off. The auto industry? I'm wishy-washy. I'd be strongly in support if there were an ironclad guarantee the bailout money would be used to completely restructure the industry, and not just maintain the status quo for another year. Still not thrilled with bailouts, but if the doom & gloom predictions by some are correct, this could get ugly and we'd find out pretty quick. And maybe the Republicans have taken us a step closer to finding out for sure.

If I wasn't just taking a quick break from work to post this, I'd do some research and find out how many times Mr. McConnell has voted against increases in the minimum wage, and other support for those struggling.

If any readers have data, drop it in the comments. (Kelly might be able to pull that number off the top of her head.)

Two of President-elect Barack Obama’s stated goals — cutting wasteful spending and saving or creating millions of jobs — are on a collision course in a looming decision over whether to keep building the F-22 fighter jet.

Air Force officials have told Congress that they are hoping to win a $9 billion commitment to produce at least 60 F-22s over a three-year period, which would expand the fleet to 243.

But the F-22, a stealthy, supersonic fighter that was designed during the cold war and has never been used in combat, has many critics, and they include Robert M. Gates, who will remain Defense secretary in the Obama administration.

So why would we consider spending another $9 billion on this albatross? Ummm, jobs, of course.

Meanwhile, supporters of the F-22 program — which has cost more than $65 billion so far — argue that Mr. Obama should extend its production, at least temporarily, to preserve thousands of jobs related to building the jets, which cost $143 million each.

Pardon me. I feel bad for the workers who would lose their jobs but let's getreal.

The logic in supporting this program is like me making the case for charging up $100,000 on my American Express card for things I'll never really use because I want the frequent flyer miles for a first-class flight to Europe.

I do not understand why every day has to be so frustrating. Work alone is enough.

But today Tater Tot vomited on the uncovered polyester comforter. We took it outside and txrad scraped off the chunks of cat food. Then he put it in the washing machine which is quite a challenge because of the bulk of this thing.

As the washing machine was filling, water was ricocheting from the comforter under the lid and outside the machine. Then as it spun it apparently spun more water outside. I walked into the kitchen and exclaimed, "What the fuck is all this water on my new travertine tiles?"

txrad started mopping it up with towels. I was moving the washer away from the wall so he could mop up water under it. And with all this, the cat vomit stain didn't come out of the comforter. Then, without my approval, he took the comforter all the way back to the master bath and began washing it in the tub.

It soaks up water, but doesn't release it very easily. This is why we have washing machines, people! They spin the water out!

So after a frustrating day at work I went to take a shower and found about 40 pounds of wet comforter sitting in the tub. Standing buck naked I'm walking across the comforter in the tub trying to squeeze out enough water so I could transport it back to the utility room. No go. I was not going to take that dripping wet thing across carpet and travertine. So I moved it into the sink for the time it took me to shower, then moved it back to the tub and allowed it to hang from the towel rack.

It will not be dry by morning. No way in hell. But maybe enough water can be squeezed out of the bottom to take it to the dryer.

About the time I had returned from my shower to complain to txrad about his madness, Tater Tot threw up again on my new floor.

I give up. It is Monday. Definitely.

txrad: "You'll never see a cat vomit stain on these floors, trust me."

konagod: "Yeah, that's the problem. I'll probably never see cat vomit on them. I'll know when I step in it."

Bottom line: I love my floors. The rest of the critters in the house need to get it together for my sake.

Friday, December 05, 2008

Sorry to interrupt my regular scheduled programming, but shit happens. And this sisn't even the one I picked. But it matches the floors and that's all that matters to me. Sorta. Enjoy. Be afraid. We Don't Fucking Know. What we're in for. In the long run. "Listen to me, don't walk that street."

I could have bought a dilapidated old tear-down foreclosure in a bad area of Detroit or Cleveland for what these floors cost, but damn, I'm not in need of a 2nd vacation home yet, and I was really tired of brown tile in the foyer, concrete floors in the den, and ratty old 80s vinyl (no, not my Motley Crüe album) in the kitchen.

Yee haa! This was worth 3 days of hell, most of which I spent at my desk shutting out all the noise, and enough Spanish radio to last me... oh, maybe three days.

Welcome to our home.

Continue on to the den...

Oops. Don't forget to take a look at the medallion which I never thought I'd want in my house until the contractor brought it by. It fits the theme.

And finally, the kitchen. Way better. Pardon the messy countertops but we haven't exactly had time to clean. In fact, I just snapped all these pictures before the guys have even left yet (it's 8:19 PM!!) and we're waiting on grout to dry.

Money well spent and invested, in my opinion. Way better than losing it in the stock market.

Note: The Virtual Outhouse will appear Saturday night due to delayed schedules on my part. Sorry, I'm not God.

I don't know how to express myself without using the F word, so here goes:

Holy Fuck!

What a strange three days it has been. My home life was relatively normal until noon on Wednesday, and we're busy wrapping up the mayhem as I type. Grout is being applied to tiles, and Tot is on my desk keeping his nose warm.

I desperately need my life to return to normal for awhile, and we are in for some heavy duty housecleaning this weekend, but at least that's normal, as opposed to being unable to leave a room in your own home without asking for permission.

Does this camera angle make me look fat?

For at least 3 days earlier this week there was a little bird outside the bedroom window which was engaging in some serious Tot Torment by flying against the window and then returning to the shrub. Tot sat there mesmerized for hours! Then the same scenario replayed again on Tuesday, for hours. Then again I noticed it on Wednesday. Sissy was watching that day.

Is that like a finch or something? I've lived here 11 years and I've never noticed these little birds before, but I have seen a number of them eating sunflower seeds outside my office window, and some of them have a yellow breast, while others have no color at all. My guess is those are the females, if my understanding of bird couture is correct.

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Wow. I was just getting involved in some extremely labor-intensive work today requiring great concentration when the flooring crew arrived with hammer and chisel to begin chipping away the tile in the foyer.

We drank a tad too much last night and txrad had a slight headache and had just taken aspirins when the noise began.

Tot was the first to take refuge in the office, with his David Bowie eyes.

The demolition noise actually wasn't bothering me at all because when I am in deep concentration I tend to shut everything out anyway. I could not shut out txrad though. He was complaining. Then he went for a short walk.

I'm very happy to see that ugly brown tile disappear. I have never really liked it.

After txrad's headache wore off, he was in perfect Virgo supervisory mode. I love this photo because that medallion in front of the fireplace just looks ethereal, like something from Lord of the Rings.

I think the crew of two worked until 7:00-ish and then called it a night. Tater Tot was happy to finally be released from the office to do his own Virgo inspection, and apparently it met with approval.

The guys are under the (probably false) impression they can finish this and the kitchen tomorrow. I have my doubts. I think we'll be seeing them again on Friday and possibly on Monday. But it is looking nice.

That black thing you see on the floor is a radio which was blasting a local Spanish station late this afternoon. I have this theory that Hispanic workers love to bring a radio into a gringo house and play those stations because they think it'll piss us off, and then when they get in their truck to leave they are listening to alternative rock or something. But I don't mind Spanish stations. The music makes me hungry. Same with classical Indian sitar music.

I'm going to figure out what station they were listening to and tomorrow I'll turn it on via the Bose. I know how to suck up.

Before they left for the night, they brought in stacks of tiles which I have begun perusing for possible strategic placement. What you see here are all the backsides of the tiles. You have to flip through them like browsing for vinyl records back in the olden days.

And in doing so, txrad and I both zoned in on this one as being particularly nice and worthy of great visible placement. That is hot!

So, what do you think? Is it going to be a big improvement? Especially in the kitchen? At least the vinyl removal won't be as noisy as the tile. I can't wait to say bye-bye to that old crap.